


The Ephemeral Engagement

by LaEmperatrizMariana



Category: Transformers - All Media Types
Genre: Body Horror, Cannibalism, Childhood Trauma, Faustian Bargain, Food, M/M, Male Slash, Murder, Necromancy, Necrophilia, Other, Tentacle Sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-27
Updated: 2015-12-27
Packaged: 2018-05-09 20:07:45
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,745
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5553623
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LaEmperatrizMariana/pseuds/LaEmperatrizMariana
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The story of how Brainstorm traveled back in time and befriends a necromancer known as "Nine". Then they proceeded to work together to fix tragedies from their past, but at what cost?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Out of the prison and into the frying pan.

**Author's Note:**

> An AU-centric story about Brainstorm and this weird necromancer that becomes his friend. And because his friend is a necromancer, this story contains necromancy. Also necrophilia is mentioned. Originally, it was with furryformers and some things didn't get translated over too well, like food.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Brainstorm ends up in bad company when he activates his time machine and befriends a necromancer named "Nine". They then try to work together to escape their captors.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is a brief sex scene in the beginning and necrophilia mention.

The day had been long and hard. Instead of resting, a jet scientist retreated to his room and began to work on his latest invention. This invention would slow down time. This would give him more time to work on things, or prevent an accident. This scientist's name was Brainstorm, incredibly intelligent and witty, or so he claimed. Attaching it to his briefcase after adding the finishing touches, his device was complete and it only required testing. However, it was unnamed. 

Getting ready to test it by pressing the power button, Brainstorm hesitated. Who wouldn’t hesitate? The device itself was very dangerous. It could slow his body down so much it would paralyze him. It would likely just explode on him, causing him a serious injury. Grabbing on to the briefcase’s handle, Brainstorm pressed the button. He felt a strange burning sensation that spread from his arms towards his core. As soon as he felt it reach his eyes, everything went black. In that darkness, he felt his limp body float aimlessly for several minutes until gravity got a hold of him and dropped him on the floor. 

Brainstorm opened his eyes but he was no longer in his room. In fact, he had no idea where he was and his GPS was no longer functioning. Holding his briefcase closer to his bosom, Brainstorm carefully explored this strange new location. He appeared to be in an abandoned warehouse. His ears still felt tingly and he was unable to detect someone approach him from behind. Before he knew it, large guards caught Brainstorm. He desperately tried to smack them away but it was futile. 

They then hurled him into a dirty cell, but he was not alone. This willowy, jet sat before him with his legs spread as he slouched over the pile of metal, making himself more comfortable. His plating was black with purple accents and he wore a visor. He didn't seem threatening so Brainstorm decided to approach him. The individual leaned over towards Brainstorm with a slight crooked smile, purring, "Dried up mummies make me moist." 

Perturbed by his statement Brainstorm asked, "There are none here, does that make you dry?" 

"No, it makes me cry," replied the jet as he slipped off his seat, "How would you feel if you're forbidden to do the only thing you can do, that you're passionate about?" 

"Terrible," said Brainstorm as he clutched to his briefcase, "All this talk of purpose. It's not what you are; it's what you are called to do." The jet looked at Brainstorm silently as he continued, "And I can't just sit here in this disgusting prison." Brainstorm pulled out a small chainsaw from his briefcase and approached the bars of the cell. 

"Don't do it!" screamed the jet, but it was too late. Brainstorm attempted to cut the bar, only for it to electrocute him upon impact. The shock was so great it immediately stopped his heart. Brainstorm's lifeless body collapsed on the floor. The jet rushed over to his side and pried off the chainsaw that had gotten stuck to Brainstorm's hand. The jet tried to hammer in Brainstorm's hand with his nimble tongue, in an attempt to seal up his wounds. Finally, he pulled Brainstorm away from the cells and into a quieter corner. 

The jet leaned close to Brainstorm's left ear whispering, "Why sleep on the ground, when you can sleep with me?" 

Brainstorm's body convulsed out of the jet's grip as he began to flap all his wings madly. Brainstorm shook his head and looked at the jet. As if it were some perverse miracle, Brainstorm had been revived. "What the hell was that?!" asked Brainstorm. 

"You fainted when the cell shocked you," shrugged the jet sheepishly, "I tried to warn you, but you were way too quick with that chainsaw." 

Brainstorm raised an eyebrow, "Oh really? I could've sworn I died. I nearly saw my maker and the fact you were hinting about your occupation beforehand..." 

"You're too smart to be tricked, I see," replied the jet, "but I assure you, it can't be helped. I take pride in my necromancy, it is the only thing I know how to do...what's your name again?" The jet squinted his eyes, as if that was somehow going to help him figure out Brainstorm's name. 

"My name is Brainstorm, what is yours?" asked Brainstorm as he extended his left hand to shake the jet's hand. 

The jet extended his left hand only to reveal he had none. Both of his hands had been cut off at the wrist. Upon realizing this, the jet hid his arms behind his back and replied, "My name is Number Nine, a necromantic savant. I apologize; I had forgotten they cut off my hands a few days ago." Nine looked at his own dirty bandages, "I'm not sure what is worse; this pain or the fact I feel suffocated. We are sentenced to die you know." 

"What?!" 

"We know too much, apparently. I'm not sure why you're here, perhaps an unfortunate curious soul, but I'm sentenced to death because I'm a traitor. I had tried to escape this cult. I have dreamed of escaping for most of my life, but I was always afraid. Where would I go? I know nothing of the outside world. It seemed a bit contradictory, but I prayed to one of the Arch-Heralds, the fourth one. I tried to summon him so he would rescue me, but instead he instructed me on how to escape." 

"Maybe you can do it again?" 

"I don't think it would work. He was very difficult to summon. I had been trying for years to get him to even speak to me and just last week he finally did. However, I was quickly apprehended and had my hands cut off, since they fear I might do something. Without my hands, I can no longer perform most of the rituals, except the one I used to revive you. For that, I only need to speak the arousing phrase." 

Brainstorm opened his briefcase. His time machine lost some of its parts, because they had gotten warped during the electrocution. Brainstorm sighed, "I got here because I time traveled and now my device is ruined. If I were able to repair it, then perhaps we could both escape from this cell. You can find another purpose; you are very quick-thinking." 

"There's barely anything here, but if you like, you can salvage things from that pile of body parts or even from my frame." 

Brainstorm decided to harvest parts from the body part pile and began shaping them into the parts he needed. Suddenly and without warning, Nine grabbed Brainstorm and began rubbing up on him. They heard a loud fizz as a can hit the cells. "Cut it out!" cried a guard who then walked away from them. Brainstorm was offended at first but understood Nine's actions and brushed them off. He continued working on his device until he finished. The briefcase had protected it for the most part and the repairs were minor. 

Brainstorm looked at Nine, "I realized there may be a flaw with my plan. You see, this device is attuned to my body. I don't think it would teleport both of us separately. It may work if we were attached somehow..." 

"If they hadn't cut off my hands, I'd have surgically fused us!" sighed Nine, "Damn it!" 

"I had a different idea, it was...coital in nature," whispered Brainstorm, "Between life and death, and I don't want to make you uncomfortable..." 

Flustered, Nine replied nervously, "...Do what you must but please be gentle. I have been hurt too many times already." Brainstorm and Nine both knelt down and looked at each other carefully. There was nothing to be said, none of them wanted to top and they couldn’t play rock-paper-scissors to decide who’d be bottoming because Nine didn’t even have hands. 

Several seconds of awkward silence later, Nine said, “Okay, can’t we just use one of those bones form the body part pile?” Brainstorm’s eyes widened, Nine continued, “I mean, either that or we continue to waste time trying to figure out who does what.” 

“That’s nasty!” Brainstorm shook his head in disgust. Nine smiled discreetly as Brainstorm tried to get himself erect but he was so grossed out nothing happened. Annoyed, Nine said, “Fine, but you gotta jerk me.” Nine raised up his stubs. It didn’t take much for Nine to become aroused, but when he was, Brainstorm sat on his spike and then activated his device. The plan worked and both vanished from the cell. 

Brainstorm was the first to wake up. This time, his vision and hearing were clearer. He gently got off of Nine. He smiled since his plan had worked. They were no longer in the cell, but in a strange cavern. Brainstorm gently tried to wake up Nine, who mumbled, “I can’t see but this ground is more comfortable. Did it work?” 

“Yeah,” Brainstorm tried to help Nine up. Nine tried to steady himself as his vision and hearing improved. When his senses stabilized, he was in awe. Nine wandered about looking at the cavern in awe. Distracted by the hauntingly beautiful ruins, he failed to notice a boulder in front of him and tripped on it. Brainstorm heard Nine fall on the floor and went to go help him up. 

Nine rejected his offer and uttered, "The ground, it calls to me." Brainstorm continued to extend his arm that finally Nine took up his offer and stood up. “What do we do now?” 

“In times like this, I always try to find a safe place to set up a lab,” shrugged Brainstorm, “I mean, as a scientist and brilliant inventor, it’s my job to invent my way out of all my problems.” Both of them wandered deeper into the cavern. Brainstorm wrapped his left arm around Nine’s arm and helped escort him. Brainstorm’s vision improved in the darkness because he was created to scope things out at night. Even though he had no idea where he was going, he could still see the way. Nine on the other hand, decided to close his eyes because he was straining to see the way. 

They arrived in what appeared to be a burial chamber. Brainstorm helped Nine to a bench, while he cleared a table and began setting up his lab. Brainstorm then pulled out a lamp and turned it on. Nine slowly walked towards him. Brainstorm worked diligently, without looking up he said to Nine, “We’re in an ancient morgue. I don’t know much about the ones who created these ruins other than they had subterranean dwellings and were mutants.” 

“Don’t worry, I know plenty about them,” smiled Nine, “They’ve always fascinated me from my youth. I remember when I was growing in my village near the Great River; some of their ruins were nearby. I often went to play in them. Their ‘morbid’ rituals are what inspired me to further dabble in necromancy. They were expert surgeons and knew how to piece together body parts, how else would they become the mutants we know them as?” 

Nine continued explaining as Brainstorm listened. The creators of the ruins had been Unicron cultists as well. But their morbid rituals made everyone else hate them. They captured and forced innocent mechs to turn into mutants and brainwashing them afterwards. For this reason, they were eventually driven off to extinction. Along with their demise, most of their own surgical advancements disappeared alongside them. All that remained were the hieroglyphs they left behind. 

Brainstorm finished setting up his lab. He sighed sadly as he dimmed the lamp in an attempt to conserve energy. 

“Brainstorm, can you do me a favor?” asked Nine as he looked at the walls. 

“Yes?” asked Brainstorm. 

“Can you help me attach some new hands,” Nine had found a pile of mummified rusted body parts. A pair of hands caught his eye and they seemed to be about his size. Brainstorm got a pair of tongs and picked up the hands, placing them on the table. 

“I also need for you to mix up some potions needed for this ritual,” said Nine, “it’s going to be tricky since we need to transmute a lot of it, but we’ve got plenty of bone meal to get what I need.” 

As much as he denied it, Brainstorm had been fascinated by this macabre science for personal reasons. It didn’t take much for him to agree to cooperate with Nine. Though he didn’t like working under anyone, Brainstorm followed Nine’s instructions often questioning them to further his own learning. Nine, who loved to chatter, didn’t mind answering questions and in fact was more than happy to teach Brainstorm. After finally creating the regents they needed, Nine instructed Brainstorm to attach the left mummified hand to his left wrist. As part of his punishment, the wound was never closed correctly. Brainstorm hand numbed the area with an anesthetic they had created and began to attach the hand as Nine instructed him. Afterwards, they hurried and the right hand was attached. 

Nine gently placed his delicate new hands in a basin they found and Brainstorm poured another potion over them. The potion reacted with the hands, releasing a strange-smelling violent plume of smoke. He continued to pour until he noticed that the potion had eaten away the rusted plating and bleached the bones. Nine grinned as he noticed his new fingers twitch. As they moved, a faint purple streak of light moved over the hands, like shiny tendons. Nine moved his hands and said to Brainstorm, “I think I made that potion too strong, but this is suffice, thank you.” 

Tired, Brainstorm sat on the bench. Seeing that Brainstorm probably needed to lie down, because the ceiling didn’t look convenient-enough to hang from, Nine began to unfold unused funeral shrouds to make a mat on the floor. Brainstorm lay down next to Nine. Before Nine said anything, Brainstorm spoke, “You know, I unknowingly built a time-machine. As I was unpacking, I realized we just traveled 14 years into the past, at least after we broke out of jail. I don’t know if it’s fate or destiny, but 14 years ago was when I lost Quark.” 

“Who’s Quark?” 

“He was my mentor, the one who encouraged my love of inventing. He was a sweet, gentle individual but you wouldn’t know it because he used to freak out about everything and was paranoid all the time. But boy, was he brilliant and very hardworking…” Brainstorm paused and wiped away a tear that ran down his face. It was of no use because then more tears started running down his face and he started to cry, “…I didn’t even get to say goodbye to him.” Brainstorm gasped, “Everything went wrong, I don’t know what came over me, but when he was telling me about some microscopic specimens, I blurted out my love for him. I confessed to him everything I felt about him. It was too sudden, I made him uncomfortable. He tried to redirect my proclamation as misguided affection, but that was further from the truth.” Brainstorm got close to Nine’s face, “I have had my share of crushes, but this came from deep within my spark. I have never felt this way about anyone before.” 

Nine handed Brainstorm a small rag for him to wipe away his tears and blow his nose. After cleaning himself up a bit Brainstorm continued, “Then…then…he walked away from me. It didn’t offend me because that’s something he’d do. I guess he wanted me to calm down. I didn't chase after him because he needed space to process everything that had happened. I sat in the lab for about eight minutes, when suddenly I heard a loud explosion down the hall…”

“Quark was involved in it, wasn’t he?” asked Nine calmly. 

“YES!!” cried Brainstorm, “I don’t even want to know how it happened, but he ended up decapitated and instantly. He had gone in to check on another experiment, like normal, and then this happened. If I knew where we were, I’d do anything to save him. His life did not deserve to end so abruptly…” Overcome with grief, Brainstorm could no longer speak. Nine tried to comfort Brainstorm. Eventually, both of them drifted off to sleep, and the lamp Brainstorm had turned off by itself. 

Sometime during the night, a small band of thieves made their way into the caverns. They had hoped they would be able to use the caverns as a new hideout. It didn't take much to discover that this cavern was no ordinary cavern. There were signs it had been inhabited during ancient times. They had no idea Brainstorm and Nine were in the caverns too because it was huge. The thieves made up their minds to explore. They had hoped they’d be able to salvage something but the cavern was barren. There was only broken pieces of pottery and cave paintings left behind. There was nothing valuable. Yet, the real treasure was deeper into the caverns, where Brainstorm and Nine rested. The morgue housed several small, but valuable embalming tools. Nine, who was aware of the tools’ value, salvaged them. He then gave these tools to Brainstorm for safekeeping. 

It was about 10 am, when Brainstorm and Nine decided to exit the morgue. Brainstorm had made Nine a backpack out of the burial shrouds and an amphora he had found there. It now carried Brainstorm’s lab equipment. They didn’t have much reason to stay in there much longer. From his partial understanding of the ancient dialect, Nine was able to find a secret passageway that led them towards the surface. Suddenly, Brainstorm covered Nine’s mouth he heard something. He leaned over to take a listen. 

The thieves were just outside this exit. They, however, were oblivious to its existence. They had gathered around and began to cook some meat. The smell just made Brainstorm’s mouth water; it had been too long since he had eaten a proper meal. Concerned, Nine signaled Brainstorm to move back deeper into the tunnel. He had something urgent he needed to say. 

“Brainstorm…,” began the Nine softly as he fiddled with his visor trying to figure out what he wanted to say, “…I don’t think you’d like that meat, unless you’re a cannibal.” 

“How do you know it’s cannibalism?” Brainstorm then shook his head, “Never mind, I don’t want to know. But what are we going to eat? I need food or my brain will suffer!” 

Nine looked at some nearby rocks, “I could try to transmute some food. I’ve only done it for alchemical ingredients. Like I’ve said before, the item we wish to transmute must be the same mass for it to be an equal exchange.” 

Brainstorm tried to pick up a large rock off the ground. Instead, he gave up and pushed it to the transmutation circle that Nine had drawn on the floor. Nine helped him push it towards the center, while pondering about what to transmutate it to. Nine decided to transmute a large piece of meat. Yet, he was unsure of the spell he needed to perform and ended up transmuting a large piece of meat anyway. Nine had no idea what type of meat it was. Consumed by hunger, both of them ate it off the ground raw. After they finished, they decided to continue going through the tunnel. 

Unfortunately, they made the mistake of eating their meal on the spot. One of the cannibalistic thieves picked up their scent. He signaled to the others who tried to feel around for the opening. Rather than linger, the thieves decided to follow Brainstorm and Nine’s scent. 

Brainstorm’s sensitive ears started picking up the thieves’ footsteps. He turned to Nine and whispered, “At least eight of them are following us.” Brainstorm let out a quiet yelp and his ears wiggled as he picked up the echo. 

Nine’s large eyes widened, “What do we do?” 

Brainstorm ran over to large clay container and opened it. He pulled out several fresh-looking loaves of bread. He sniffed a loaf and took a bite out of it, before spitting it out and gagging on the taste. 

Disgusted Brainstorm said, “This bread has so much bicarbonate in it that it’s been preserved for thousands of years. We just need highly concentrated acetic acid to create a powerful bomb with this bread.” Brainstorm and Nine carried the container with the bread along the tunnel. Brainstorm then heard the soft sound of running water. 

They put down the clay container and Nine drew the transmutation circle on the side. Too busy watching Nine draw on the container, Brainstorm didn’t notice the thieves standing meters away from them. Nine looked up and whispered to Brainstorm, “They’re right ahead of us. Try not to look delicious.” 

One of the thieves swaggered close to them, “What do we have here? A couple of nerdy jets, so looks like we’re going to feast on deep-fried wings tonight.” 

“You know, deep-fried foods aren’t good for you,” replied Brainstorm smugly, “wouldn't you enjoy some bread instead?” Brainstorm and Nine both hurled the container at the thieves, injuring their backs in the process. While Brainstorm spoke, Nine chanted the transmutation spell that transformed the container into concentrated acetic acid. The acid, in turn, then soaked the bread causing it to combust. The force of the explosion was so strong that it collapsed the floor. Everyone fell into the abyss. Brainstorm then grabbed Nine’s hand and started to fly. Nine struggled to fly because his wings had been clipped as part of his punishment. Brainstorm spotted a tunnel and guided Nine towards it. They went deeper into the tunnel as the floor continued to collapse.


	2. Sneaking back into work during vacation.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Brainstorm and Nine make their first move. They decide to travel back to the New Institute to save Quark from death.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's no porn in this chapter, it just has a melancholy mood to it. Also, the Faustian pact is mentioned in this chapter.

“How did you know this bomb was going to work?” asked Nine still shaken from the blast. 

“Nine, trust me,” replied Brainstorm, “I’m a genius. And we’re definitely going to find a way out.” Brainstorm continued to listen his way through the tunnel. After the dust settled, he was able to better hear the sound of running water. Moving farther down the tunnel, they noticed a strange cyan glow. 

They entered another chamber in the cave. It was illuminated by glowing mushrooms that grew on the walls. The floor of the chamber was covered in water except for an elevated spot that had mossy rocks around it. Brainstorm’s sensitive ears twitched and he turned around to see Nine eating the glowing mushrooms. 

“This is for alchemy, isn’t it?” asked Brainstorm. 

“Yeah,” replied Nine with his mouth glowing cyan, “It stings a little but it’s completely safe, medicinal too! My back doesn’t hurt that much anymore. Try some.” Nine handed Brainstorm a small piece of mushroom. Brainstorm tasted it. The mushroom shocked his tongue at first but it had a light fruity taste to it. They decided to harvest several before flying towards the small island. 

When they arrived, they noticed the rocks were once part of an ancient altar based on the way they were arranged. Brainstorm found a suitable spot to set up his lab again. Nine found an old mortar and pestle at the site. He then began mixing the glowing mushrooms with other mushrooms he had found. He managed to make a small potion and offered it to Brainstorm as a gift. 

Brainstorm took a sip and felt revitalized, “Whoa what kind of potion is this?” 

“Combination health fortification and smithing enhancement, thought you might like it,” Nine smiled. 

“I like the way you think, you need to teach me this,” said Brainstorm, “I never thought I’d say this, but I was wrong about this occult branch of science and medicine. All this time, I thought it was nonsense. Thank you for convincing me otherwise. You’re really good at making potions. You say you’ve got no skills, but with your abilities you can make lots of money working as a pharmacist.” 

“What?!” Nine blushed and covered his face, “This is nothing special! Just little me playing around with herbs and powders. I’m only good at dissecting cadavers for salvageable parts!” 

Brainstorm then began to work on his device and noticed his work-flow became more efficient. He didn’t talk much to Nine as he worked because he was the type of guy who would completely immerse himself in his projects. After a while, he felt the effects of the potion wear off and went to ask Nine for more. 

“Performance-enhancers have a tendency to cause dependency,” said Nine, “it’s one of the first things I was taught. The more you use them, the more you’ll need a stronger dose. Eventually, you can’t even function without having to drink these.” 

“I understand,” replied Brainstorm, “Hell, I’ve worked for years without that anyway. Okay, I just need to tell you that I repaired the teleportation mechanism. So now we can travel to an exact location instead of hoping we’d end up somewhere safe.” Brainstorm smirked a little, “I was wondering, if maybe you’d help me test it.” 

“We’re getting out of this cave?” 

“Yes, but I had another plan. You see, tomorrow is the 14th anniversary of Quark’s death. I was wondering, maybe we could teleport to the facility and try to prevent it from occurring. It’s haunted me for years and I’m starting to think that, that’s probably the reason my work and motivation have suffered. Being competitive can only get you so far, but it lacks a purpose. An intellectual, such as myself, needs a reason to continue doing what I do; a purpose. Quark always told me to expand my knowledge and understanding to benefit myself. Unfortunately, I ended pushing myself for his approval. With him gone, I’ve stagnated because he was my motivation.” Brainstorm wiped a tear away from his face. 

“This may be far-fetched to you, but I have some understanding of time-travel,” said Nine quietly, “I am a devout follower of the Fourth Arch-Herald, sometimes referred to as the _Coffee Demon_. His dominion is over time. He rarely speaks to anyone and when I heard his voice…But he is detached and cold, to say the least. I don’t blame him. There was something about him that’s different; like he’s less evil compared to the others. Maybe that’s why he never answers. Many ask for destruction, for power, or other selfish reasons…Perhaps he doesn’t want to tamper in the lives of mortals. Time itself is a delicate balance. So delicate, that two of the same soul cannot coexist near each other because one will die because there can only ever be one.” 

Brainstorm stroked his chin, “So I can’t be around myself? Either the current me or the past me will die. If the past me dies, then I’d cease to exist since I died in the past. I really want to see Quark again one last time, but I now I fear running into myself…wait, I got it!” Brainstorm looked around in his briefcase and everywhere else. “I’ll make myself a small camera that I can attach to you, so I can guide you to where you need to go. I know all the passwords. They haven’t changed them in years. All you need to do is just stop Quark from entering that room where the explosion occurred. Not how I envisioned it, but it’s perfect. I hope it works!” Brainstorm hurried and tried to build himself the remote camera he mentioned with small pieces of metal he found there. However, he was missing a lens and didn’t want to cut into his glass equipment. Annoyed, Brainstorm scrapped the project and began to build something else. 

“What are you making?” asked Nine as he peered over Brainstorm’s shoulder. 

“A shrink ray,” said Brainstorm, “I mean, if two souls couldn’t exist in one place, I’d have died as soon as I got here but I didn’t. I think I’d have to do something very radical in order to erase my existence, so if I was tiny and didn’t do anything, no one would suspect a thing. I have no other way of communicating with you anyway.” 

“Fair-enough, but how am I going to be able to sneak in without anyone noticing. I don’t exactly look like I’d fit in. I bear the insignia of Unicron on my plating. Outsiders, like you, think that’s _bad_.” 

“That can be fixed. I just have to scrape off and paint over your insignias. I have the badge and everything from work and it’s been the same. They’ll just think you’re a new employee. And to be even less suspicious, I’ll let you borrow my Autobot badge too.” 

Brainstorm and Nine made some paint and painted over the insignias. Brainstorm found some leftover chain to tether his briefcase to his right hand. Brainstorm carried Nine’s amphora and shrunk himself to ride in Nine’s cockpit. When everything was prepared, they teleported to the facility. 

Nine entered at around the time there was the change of shift. This was about 8 am. With Brainstorm communicating with him through the cockpit, Nine made his way towards the laboratories. Suddenly, Nine heard someone approaching and hid in a janitorial closet. He peered through the keyhole and heard two tall mechs talking to each other. 

“What are you looking at, Nine?” 

“Look at him,” Nine purred, “just standing there like a well-built bronzed specimen. He has a body that is meant to be caressed. Everything about him is just so… _hnnng_. That long sensual neck; how I’d pepper it with a plethora of kisses. Those lips, such soothingly sweet words that flow from them too...” 

“Nine...?” said Brainstorm as he tried to get a view of what Nine had seen. 

“Is this your Quark? He’s so handsome, I can see why you’d be smitten by him...” 

“No, that’s my boss…well before he became my boss. His name is Lobe and he’s a real p...” 

“...Oh...perfect! I mean, how does Quark look like then?” 

“Quark is a microscope about our size. He’s mostly white with light blue accents and he wears amber-tinted glasses. A bit on the anxious side, though.” 

After the mech seemed to have left, Nine exited the closet and continued to towards the lab. Without warning, Brainstorm began pounding on Nine’s buttons to get his attention. Before Nine had a chance to figure out what Brainstorm was telling him, a strong hand touched his shoulder and turned him around. It was Lobe. 

“Who are you?” asked Lobe calmly, “You seem…unfamiliar.” 

“My name is Smart Robin,” replied Nine coolly, who listened to what Brainstorm was telling him “I’m new and assigned to this sector. I’m just running late, is all.” 

“You don’t even look like a bird,” Lobe circled around him, “but that’s not exactly a bad thing. Tell me, who do you work under?” 

“Dr. Quark,” replied Nine nervously. 

Lobe got closer Nine and whispered sensually, “How’d you like to work under me?” 

Nine blushed, he wasn’t even sure if Lobe was being serious or was flirting with him. Lobe’s stern and haughty demeanor made it impossible to tell. After a few seconds, Lobe sighed, “I’m just joking. I don’t have that kind of authority; not yet. But if I did…” He chuckled softly, “Go on before you get in trouble.” 

Nine hurried away. Still flustered, he entered a nearby bathroom in the laboratory. He then whispered to Brainstorm, “Brainstorm, why didn’t you tell me this Lobe was so...amiable?” said Nine, still shaken from the encounter. He began to wash his face. 

“Amiable? He’s mean for no reason,” replied Brainstorm, “But he’s also one of the best bosses I’ve ever had. Goal-oriented and punctual, doesn’t meddle. This is the first time I’ve ever seen him…nice. It’s just scary because seems out of character. The most frightening part of all was that it felt sincere.” 

Nine stopped, “I’d be more concerned about why he’s reluctant to be ‘nice’. What hurt him?” Brainstorm paused he wanted to say something but no words came out. Nine then left the bathroom and continued his search of Quark. 

Brainstorm pressed more of Nine’s buttons. Nine looked around and saw a microscope fitting the description Brainstorm had given him. Brainstorm got so excited that he had fainted out of joy. Nine made sure Brainstorm was safe before approaching Quark. 

“Excuse me, are you Dr. Quark?” asked Nine. 

Quark looked at Nine, “Yes?” He looked visibly nervous, "Are you a new janitor, by any chance?" 

Without skipping a beat Nine said, “No, but Brainstorm really cares about you. He—”

“Yes,” sighed Quark, “he already told me. Please, we should take this somewhere besides the halls.” 

“How about in your office?” said Nine, “probably a lot safer.” 

“Sounds reasonable.” Quark led Nine to his office and they took a seat. 

“What’s your name again?” asked Quark. 

“Nine,” replied Nine, “used to be Brainstorm’s neighbor when we were growing up.” 

“I see. I don’t know what to do, to be honest. Where did I go wrong? I was only trying to help him.” 

“Love happens.” 

“I know, but the thing is…Brainstorm is like a younger brother to me. He’s the same age as my little brother Percy… I’m also taken.” 

“…!”

“I don’t talk about my personal life much, because it’s not job-related. Maybe I should’ve told him about Nightbeat sooner. He’s an old friend of mine, works as a detective. He helped me when I needed him the most. That was years ago, back when Brainstorm and Percy were toddlers. I was in uni and suddenly had to deal with the loss of my parents and caring for my younger brother. I don’t know what I would’ve done without his help. Having to go to school and caring for a young sparkling is difficult enough as it is. Plus the grief! I was an only-child for many years; I was very close to my parents.” 

Quark then explained that a horde of terrorcons destroyed his hometown. It was the doing of necromancers. Many innocent people were murdered during the attack. Percy survived because his crib fell over, hiding him. It was unknown how much Percy had saw and how it affected him. Nine was familiar with this custom. Something similar had happened to his village. He didn’t understand it until he became older. This was a brazen act and cultists would also prefer not to do it. They needed to commit a mass murder to appease a demon they angered. 

Empathizing with Quark’s pain, Nine sighed, “Oh…”

“I swear, if I ever see a necromancer, I’d punch him in the face…,” Quark stood up, “sorry about that, it’s just that I have strong feelings about this. But yes, Nightbeat has been good to me. I don’t see him as much as I would like because he’s always undercover. However, the distance has done very little to ruin our relationship.” 

“This doesn’t sound that bad,” replied Nine, “I don't see why you'd hide your relationship with Nightbeat from him.” 

“You don’t understand,” sighed Quark, “he wants to win my approval. Though I have an appropriate reason to reject him, I fear him knowing about this will discourage him from the field entirely. It’s so rare to encounter someone with such a passion that he has. And I know he’s doing it all for me. I’m still baffled why doesn’t like Percy instead. They’re the same age and they love the same things. They’re both insane! I don’t understand how anyone in their right mind would love explosions and deadly weaponry. But no, they’re just too competitive with one another and are blinded by this.” 

Nine tilted his head to the right and made a confused noise. 

“Yes I ship it, don’t judge me!” Quark covered his face. 

Nine noticed that Brainstorm was starting to wake up. “I still insist that you go tell Brainstorm. He needs to know how you feel. If you want, I’ll go there with you so he’d feel more comfortable.” 

“I don’t know,” Quark who then looked at his watch, “it has to wait!” Frantically, Quark led Nine out of his office, “I’m supposed to supervise the activation of this experimental reactor. I’m going to be late.” Quark hurried away from Nine. 

Nine followed Quark, which made the latter more uncomfortable. “Could you please stop following me?” 

Nine shook his head. He hurried next to Quark adding, "It’s dangerous, don’t go in there! It’s going to explode and it won’t end well for any of us.” 

Quark scoffed at Nine and tried to open the door. Nine tried to block him. After a brief struggle, Quark pulled out a laser and shinned it on the wall. This caught Nine’s attention. As soon as Nine was distracted, Quark slipped through the door and locked it. Shocked, Nine sat on the floor in silence. Brainstorm, had realized what had happened, flew out of Nine’s cockpit and un-shrunk himself. 

“I’m…I’m sorry,” Nine’s voice quivered, “an innocent person is killed and it’s all my fault.” 

Brainstorm looked at a pocket watch he carried. “Please don’t cry, this time it will be different. Quark won’t be flung directly to a sharp shelf where he dies on impact, I know it. You’ve delayed it enough. Things will be different for all of us from now on.” 

Without warning, Brainstorm activated a nearby fire alarm, and briskly grabbing Nine’s hand, accidentally making the latter bump his neck against a wall fixture. They teleported out of the facility. Everything went dark. Moments later, an explosion is heard in the lab. 

Back at the cave, Nine is the first to wake up. He looked at his skeletal hands. He touched his neck and a strange sorrow came over him. The guilt was suffocating him. Brainstorm then woke up, this time everything was different. He saw Nine sobbing inconsolably on the ground. 

“Nine, you have to cheer up, you’re free now…” said Brainstorm happily. 

“What about Quark?” asked Nine, trying to calm down. 

“Quark? He was in this freak-explosion and hit his head against this shelf. The impact severely damaged his brain stem and that’s why he’s on life-support. But the miraculous part is that he’s not brain-dead. In fact, all the brain scans say he’s conscious just like everyone else. He just can’t physically respond due to his injury, but he is alive. And this is the reason I’ve dedicated myself to science. I hope that one day I’ll invent a cure for him. Not only did you save him, but you saved his brother, Perceptor, as well.” 

“How?” asked Nine. 

“After the explosion, Perceptor had made his way into the room. Seeing Quark’s gruesome death mortified him. He let out this loud terrible shriek that I don’t even want to think about. He was distraught for several weeks. He should’ve talked about it, but no. I’m convinced he relived the same trauma he experience as a sparkling, when he witnessed his parents’ murder. Either too proud or too hurried to find a way to ease his suffering, he ended up getting shadowplayed. He had his emotions removed. That day, the Perceptor I loved and admired, died. All that was left of him was a husk of his former self. Still brilliant, but…I just get sick thinking about it. Fortunately, this didn’t happen. Perceptor is still himself, but now also motivated to save his brother because of this we occasionally work together and it’s wonderful.” 

Nine smiled nervously, “It’s nice to hear there’s hope out there for someone…”

“Of course and then that’s where you come in,” smiled Brainstorm, “all we’ve got to do is take you to the OR. They’d perform a brain stem transplant on Quark and if anything goes wrong, you’ll be there to resuscitate him. This could not be any more perfect!” Brainstorm giggled. “What’s wrong? I thought you’d be happy now.” 

“I’m not,” sighed Nine, “this has nothing to do with your friend. It's about visions I saw while we traversed through time. I’m crying because I just saw my destiny and I don’t like it one bit. It’s worse than anything I could ever imagine. I can’t escape from it. I’d ask you to shoot me, but then I’d be condemned in death because of my lifelong involvement in the dark arts.” 

“What was it? Maybe I can help?” 

“He spoke to me.” 

“Who?” 

“Unicron. He called on me to be his Arch-Herald. Do you have any idea how disgusted I am by this?” 

“What exactly is an Arch-Herald? A demon?” 

An Arch-Herald was usually the most powerful and devout follower of Unicron. How they came to be chosen, is unclear. For centuries, they were thought of as lesser demons but that was further from the truth. They were mortals given terrible god-like powers in the exchange of defiling their sparks. A defiled spark cannot reunite with the Allspark and it is eternally condemned. However, the few mortals who underwent this ritual realized it was a terrible curse. The more they used their powers, the more they lose themselves to Unicron’s influence. There was only one beneficial ability that had no impact on their damnation – the ability to respawn. It was guaranteed immortality as long as the item they bound their soul to was safe. 

Even so, Nine never felt “right” about being part of the cult he was raised in and dreamed of escaping. Hearing the calling meant that his dreams of escaping would never come true. Nine was destined to be a slave to Unicron for eternity. That was why he wept. 

“What if I took your place instead?” said Brainstorm. 

“WHAT?!” shouted Nine, “no it is horrible! You’re too wonderful of a person to commit such a horrible act. Once you’re defiled, you can never be pure.” 

“How do you know it’s horrible?” 

“I was clearly instructed with how to perform this ritual on myself. In the vision I saw how it should be performed. But the man who did it was…I have no way of describing now terrible he was. He did it on his unconscious conjunx which he drugged, betraying his trust. Apparently, the less the conjunx knew about it, the better. He then bound his spark to his conjunx’s spark. There was also another mech who was going to bind his spark to this planet? I don’t know what it was, but I woke up before it even finished. It started the same as the other one, that’s for sure. Everything about this is disgusting. I rather pick apart rotting corpses, and drink from their rancid energon than do this ritual.” 

“But the respawning! That means I won’t accidentally die if something blows up.” 

“What?!” 

“The cult was horrible. Your upbringing was abhorrent at best. I understand that. But I also understand that curses are bad if you let them be bad. If you use your curse as a benefit towards others, then it’s not much of a curse. Let me take your place, and then you’d be free.” 

“How will I be free with the guilt of having condemned another mech to damnation? I still feel horrible for failing to prevent Quark from entering that lab.” 

“I’m only condemned if I use my powers like they’re supposed to be used. If I use the curse to not die, I can push myself beyond the limit. I could invent things that are beneficial for everyone without the fear of death holding me back. Though fear is a self-preservation instinct, it can be restricting. I need this badly, not for myself but for everyone else.” 

Nine looked at Brainstorm as he stood up. He paused for a minute, wiping away his last tear. “If you claim to do this for altruistic reasons, I ask for one favor.” 

“What is it?” 

“After we finish this unholy act, I want us to time travel to my village and save everyone from dying. This is all I ask and nothing more. I’ve come to realize that their death was all my fault. The cultists wanted me, but then decided to kill everyone to rid themselves of witnesses. They didn’t have to die and now it’s time to make things right once more.” 

“Fair enough, we saved Quark,” Brainstorm chuckled, "we can save others too." 

“Alright let’s do this thing!” Nine then broke his fingers because he wanted to make them snap, “Damn it!” He had no nerves on his hands and realized what he had done when he heard the snap. Using some metal wires he found, Brainstorm helped repair Nine’s hands.


	3. The inevitable entrophy and the rebirth of four.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Brainstorm completes the ritual thanks to Nine's help. They then leave the cavern. As payment, Brainstorm promises Nine to travel back to his village to save the villagers from getting slaughtered and they do just that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I divided up this story, I had no idea the tentacle sex scene and the "glove scene" both ended up in this chapter. So yeah, this is a porn chapter with a taste of hentai.

Brainstorm and Nine began preparing for the Arch-Herald ritual, gathering everything they needed. Since the small island they were on had been a place of morbid rituals, they didn’t have to look far. After everything was ready, Nine said to Brainstorm, “You need a phylactery.” 

“What’s that?” asked Brainstorm. 

“An item to bind your spark to,” replied Nine, “ideally, it has to be an item that is resilient and in a safe location. It can be anything you...” Nine’s eyes widened as Brainstorm opened his briefcase, revealing his time traveling invention. He didn't think twice about choosing it. 

“You are aware that there may come a time that you must destroy this item.” 

“This is a prototype. When I get to that point, this will be superseded.” 

Brainstorm placed his invention, partially taken apart, on the altar. He took out a scalpel and some tongs that had been enchanted. Nine held a mirror in front of Brainstorm. Brainstorm then inserted the tongs into his chest and gently pried-out his spark. He still kept it inside his body, but began to feel weakened. He carefully sliced the piece near the tongs and let go of the life-essence which quickly retreated back into his body. At this point, Nine continued with the instruction as he stood behind Brainstorm hoping to give him support. Brainstorm dipped the fragment of spark into an elixir, which dried quickly upon contact. The fragment was then placed inside the invention and quickly sealed up. After everything was done, Brainstorm fell back and Nine helped him to the ground.

“How do you feel?” asked Nine. 

“I feel worse now than I did when Quark had died,” Brainstorm sighed. 

“I’m sorry,” said Nine. 

Brainstorm’s ears perked up. He heard a sudden movement from an unknown location, other than it felt nearby. “Not sure if it’s because I’m still sensitive about this ordeal, but I feel as if we’re no longer alone.” 

A large metallic tubular tentacle wrapped around Nine's right leg and slowly made its way towards his crotch. Nine's loud screams almost gave Brainstorm a migraine. Another tentacle grabbed his other leg. Nine tried to fly away while clawing at the tentacles, but they were too strong. The clawing was ineffective since the skeletal hands didn't even have nails. 

Brainstorm was about to go throw rocks at it when he decided to speak, “Hey Tenta-kun! Please leave my poor friend alone, it’s me you want.” 

Still struggling, Nine replied, “Are you trying to reason with this thing?” 

“Of course.”

The tentacles released its grip on Nine. They made their way towards Brainstorm, who threw his briefcase at Nine. Nine caught the briefcase and tried to make his way towards Brainstorm’s shrink-ray gun. Brainstorm saw him and signaled Nine to stop. Nine then hid under the altar as the tentacles began wrapping around Brainstorm’s body. 

Trying to make himself comfortable Brainstorm noticed a pair of tentacles coming out of the water. Unlike the other tentacles, this pair had ridges on them but the ridges appeared to be soft. Brainstorm spread his legs open and this tentacle started stroking his genitals. As the tentacle made its way into Brainstorm, his eyes began to glow an ominous yellow as he moaned. 

Nine closed his eyes tightly as he tried to make out what Brainstorm’s plan was. Was Brainstorm trying to test out his new respawning abilities? It was uncertain. 

Meanwhile, the tentacles started thrusting into Brainstorm faster. Brainstorm clenched his valve tighter which only made the tentacles vibrate with more intensity. Unfazed, the tentacle monster continued its deed until it decided to withdraw. But it was too late. It was caught in a vise. 

Partially breached, the tentacle monster made eye-contact with the unholy creature it held in its clutches. As if the tentacle monster still contained a trace of its spark, it realized its grave mistake. The more it struggled for freedom, the more it aroused Brainstorm...or a facsimile. The tentacle monster decided to dive down further underwater. All it did was worsen the situation. The creature that held onto it seemed partial to asphyxia. 

The subterranean reservoir was an underwater grave. Littered with the twisted skeletal remains of abominations, this was indeed something Nine or some deranged archaeologist would've masturbated to. The tentacle monster was dragged towards the surface. Perhaps it was the vertigo, but the unholy creature finally came. An unimaginable amount energy ran down the tentacles. As soon as they penetrated the tentacle monster deep in its life-essence, it felt its final moments one last time. Brainstorm released it. The tentacle monster exploded, catapulting Brainstorm out of the water. Brainstorm caught flight and gracefully landed on the island, next to Nine. 

Still shaken, Nine came out from underneath the altar. As soon as he saw Brainstorm, he stood there in angry silence. Brainstorm made eye-contact with him, which prompted the latter to speak. 

"I have a bone to pick with you..." Nine said with a snarl. 

"Please, keep your disgusting fetishes to yourself!" Brainstorm backed away. 

Nine paused. Annoyed, he shook his head, "That's not what I meant, and you know this! This was all your doing after all, wasn't it? Manipulating me for your own gain. You told me to turn left, no you begged me to. I lost my hands because of you. To think that I devoted my life to a god like you." 

Brainstorm held out his hand and motioned Nine to stop. Brainstorm spoke, his voice sounded different; it was deeper and almost monstrous. "You fool! You wept in the cell when the first time we met. You wished you had never turned right because they captured you and cut off your hands. That is why, when I heard your prayers, I told you to turn left. I wanted to avoid this fate for you. But alas, what can we do? I've realized that fate is predestined." 

Brainstorm began to revert to his normal self. "No matter what we do, we will end up in the same place under the same circumstances. Destined to die and relive things that have to occur. I have failed you." He took the briefcase away from Nine, clutching it tightly. 

"Brainstorm, Arch-Herald, whoever you are," mewed Nine, "I did not know. But how could you...when did this happen? I do not understand." 

"I don't know. But it all makes sense now. My dominion is over ‘time’, remember? It doesn't matter when I came to be, I am always present now; timeless. Yet this does not make me omniscient. What I see in the future is but a dream. Our actions can alter the future for the better or for the worse. In this case, it was the same result no matter what we did. Same thing happened to poor Quark; his destiny was to be victim to a lab explosion." 

"Have you tried to alter time before? You speak from experience." 

"Yes. Sometimes I wish I didn't. Suffering is suffering. It is unavoidable." 

"If things are destined to happen, better you than some corrupt mech with your powers. So what do we do now?" 

"I need to think but I think better when I'm in my workshop. There maybe we can figure out how to save your family and the villagers. Nine, hold my hand.” 

Nine nodded as Brainstorm held his hand. This time, he didn't even open his briefcase to activate it. His body was attuned to the time machine, that this was unnecessary. He teleported himself with Nine into the present. (The date in which he initially tested out his invention.) Brainstorm helped Nine unpack his amphora, and tried to make him comfortable. 

Brainstorm lived in a small apartment in the laboratory facility; it wasn’t exactly a comfortable place. He didn’t think twice about bringing Nine over. In fact, he didn’t think at all because non-employees would have to fill out even more paperwork just to stay there. This wasn’t any of Brainstorm’s concern at the moment; he was trying to make sure Nine was comfortable. After all, none of this would’ve happened if it wasn’t for Nine. 

Meanwhile, Nine explored the apartment. For once, the place didn’t smell moldy. Brainstorm had caught up with him and after a brief tour. Brainstorm decided to go back into this lab, while Nine stayed in the bedroom. While Brainstorm was busy examining the embalming tools they had found, Nine decided to play with himself. Yet, it did not go as planned. As soon as Nine parted his aroused valve, he let out a freighted mewl that was loud-enough for Brainstorm to hear. He entered the bedroom and caught Nine in the compromising position. 

“Are you alright?” asked Brainstorm. 

Nine’s face was red and he replied, “It doesn’t feel quite right with these hands. It’s as if a stranger touched me. Plus they are cold and hard.” 

Brainstorm, who was busy, said “I wish I could…help you, but I’m in the middle of something. I promise I’ll help you later.” Brainstorm hurried out of the room. 

Nine was annoyed and had no intentions of waiting. He went out of the room and took two pairs of gloves Brainstorm had in his lab. Brainstorm noticed him enter and thought nothing of it. He assumed Nine wanted to wear them for comfort. Nine entered the kitchen and filled the two pairs of gloves with tap water. After tying the inflated gloves closed, he returned to the bedroom. Putting the gloves aside, he pulled out a marker from the drawer and drew sigils on them. After chanting a quick spell, the two pairs of gloves began to move on their own; floating in the air like ghostly balloons. 

Two of the gloves fondled the vents on his shoulders and the other two gloves glided down his abdomen, spreading him open. Nine tried his best to remain quiet, he had the feeling Brainstorm would scold him for such a brazen act. Somehow, the gloves knew his weaknesses, as they played with his vents, gently massaged his external node and made their way into his valve. Nine tried his best to resist the urge to cum. His whole body was becoming hot and he began to pant. Feeling he had enough, he tried to shoo away the gloves. However, the gloves had other ideas and began to grope Nine more roughly. Nine tried to moan as quiet as possible but it was no use. The way the gloves fondled him all over, he was helpless against them. 

Brainstorm rushed back into the room and saw Nine at the mercy of the gloves. Brainstorm was speechless. He should’ve known better than to leave Nine alone and almost regretted returning to the bedroom. Nine finally noticed Brainstorm and cried, “Shoot the gloves!” 

Brainstorm pulled out his trusty pistol and prepared to aim. As he stuck out his pinky like the dainty fop he was, he stopped and put away the pistol. Brainstorm pulled out a fancy divan from his briefcase and sat down. “No, I told you to wait and you didn’t so I’m just going to sit here while you think about what you did.” 

Nine gasped, whether it was due to shock or that the gloves slipped deeper into his valve, is unknown. Brainstorm was enchanted by those gloves and wished he had some for himself. They moved with surgical precision. Overwhelmed by the sensation, Nine came; his entire body trembled. Brainstorm had tried to enjoy the spectacle, but Nine’s distress ultimately ruined it for him. The gloves were not done with Nine just yet and seized him once more. Brainstorm pulled out his pistol again and shot at the gloves. They popped and the water splashed all over Nine and the bed. 

As Nine tried to get up, Brainstorm pinned him to the bed and whispered to his ear, “So you thought you’d experiment without me? Think again.” 

Brainstorm nuzzled Nine’s ear as he moved his hands down Nine’s body. Unlike the gloves, Brainstorm’s warm hands felt more pleasant. Brainstorm spread Nine’s valve open and inserted his spike into him. Nine was caught by surprise. Watching Nine’s plight was just enough to get Brainstorm off. Brainstorm gently turned Nine’s face towards him, and kissed him. The kiss was not of love or romance, it was only part of the act and nothing more. Both of them had a mutual understanding. 

Brainstorm began to thrust into Nine. Usually, Brainstorm wasn’t the type to mount anyone but this time he felt it needed to be done. Nine clenched tightly, he wasn’t used to such energetic vigor. Nine managed to gather his breath and whimpered, “Brainstorm, what has gotten into you?” 

With a smirk, Brainstorm replied in a calm manner, “Don’t think I’ve forgotten what you whispered in my ear. ‘Why sleep on the ground, when you can sleep with me?’ After all, you also claim devotion to me. So why not appease your supposed god, with a carnal offering?” 

Brainstorm's voice sounded monstrous. This was unintentional. But the voice, so close to his ear, made Nine’s heart race. Brainstorm thrusted harder and faster into Nine, whose mind had gone blank due to the euphoria he felt. Not long after, both of them finally came together. Brainstorm pulled out and took a couple of steps back. They had made such a mess and Brainstorm had just changed those sheets hours ago. 

Unfazed Brainstorm went to the kitchen and brewed some tea. Seeing the time, he decided to have dinner with Nine. They both drank some with a teacup in hand and their pinkies out; the proper way. Too hungry to care, Nine ate alongside Brainstorm as they watched a random show on TV. 

Nine took a sip of the tea and said to Brainstorm, "Thank you, you've been generous to me." 

"Tomorrow, I promise you, we will travel to your childhood and save everyone. Cheers!" replied Brainstorm. They clinked teacups and resumed drinking their tea. 

To show his gratitude, Nine transmutated six old phone books into a grimoire later that evening. The grimoire was large and contained everything Nine knew about alchemy. Nine had suggested transmuting another grimoire that dealt with necromancy, but Brainstorm declined the offer. That particular field of magic made him uncomfortable. He had never felt this way about something before. Brainstorm had a gut feeling this may have something to do with his new abilities. 

After dinner and showering, Brainstorm offered Nine his bed. Brainstorm had decided to on the couch. It was good to finally be at home. However, Brainstorm was unable to sleep for very long. He was unable to sleep well. His mournful whimpers woke Nine up who rushed over and gently petted Brainstorm's head, waking him up. Shaken, Brainstorm sighed with relief. 

"Those visions you spoke about," said Brainstorm, "I just had one of those. I'm not sure how I'd describe it, but I had a vision I traversed through time. This time it was to the distant past, before I was born. I'm confused as to what happened, but I carry the guilt of hurting an innocent sparkling for the benefit of many. I'm not even sure what type of sparkling he was. Very small and had winglets. It's a person I couldn't bear to look in the eye due to all the irreparable damage I've caused them." 

Brainstorm wept as Nine continued to comfort him. "You should wash your face and brush your teeth, my Lord," said Nine, who looked at the time, "we can always go visit my family when you are feeling better." 

Brainstorm nodded and headed to the bathroom. Still upset, Brainstorm went to brush his teeth. He looked into the bathroom mirror briefly and accidentally choked on the toothpaste. His own reflection horrified him. His arms up to his elbows were blackened, and his cheeks melted off, exposing large pointy teeth he didn’t have before. Brainstorm touched his cheek and felt his teeth. Brainstorm began to weep as he continued to brush his teeth. 

Up until that point, he did not realize the seriousness of his actions. What would Quark say to him if he saw Brainstorm like this? Quark had strong convictions against the undead. Soon Brainstorm’s tears clouded his vision. He wiped them away only to see his normal reflection in the mirror. He was back to his normal self, his arms unburned and his cheeks full. Still shaken, Brainstorm rinsed out his mouth and left the bathroom. 

Nine was sitting on the kitchen counter. Before Brainstorm was able to speak, Nine said, “What is wrong, my Lord? You seem upset?" 

"How does my face look?" asked Brainstorm desperately. 

"Batty," replied Nine, "but if you mean whether or not you've assumed your more...profane appearance, you look 'normal'. Like how you did when we first met." Nine got closer to Brainstorm, "Though there's nothing wrong with your profane appearance."

"Gah!" Brainstorm threw his arms into the air, "Nine please, I'm not an undead!" Nine raised an eyebrow. Brainstorm paused for a second and said, “Oh yeah, how could I forget?” 

"I've heard somewhere that you have to have died suddenly to even be considered an Arch-Herald," Nine pouted, "Also, very valuable. Come to think of it, I don't remember dying. So why did Unicron speak to me?" 

Brainstorm shrugged, "Maybe he didn't want you to leave. You did say he chooses those who are very valuable. You've certainly proven your worth so far." 

Nine couldn’t help but smile. Brainstorm walked over to the refrigerator and took out some eggs and butter. He then asked Nine to make coffee, but forgot he had run out of coffee. 

“What is a Coffee Demon without coffee?” asked Nine, with a light chuckle, “Since you haven’t started cooking the eggs, how about I give you a little lesson in transmutation? We could transmute the good kind. I’m not sure what that would be since I’m no expert in coffee.” 

At first Brainstorm was annoyed at Nine’s remark, but the explanation calmed him down. “I think I remember the transmutation circle you draw looks like,” said Brainstorm as he sketched it in a notepad. 

Nine looked over it and shook his head, “This isn’t the one for edible items. This is the one used for alchemical ingredients like hydrargyrum, natrium or plumbum. It’s good that you know this one since these things can be used in your line of work.” Brainstorm handed Nine the notepad, so he could illustrate the different summoning circles. Nine only knew three by memory: the edible raw ingredients circle, the inedible raw ingredient circle and the necromancy circle. Brainstorm had not seen the last one before and asked for an explanation. Nine told him that unlike the other two, this one was large and had to be drawn on the floor. It was originally developed for discreet grave-robbing. However, some people had used it for kidnapping. Pausing, Nine then said to Brainstorm, “This was how they captured me. They used a piece of paint as one of the reagents. Obviously, to get it to work you need a body-part; this includes hair too, of the person you want to summon before your presence.” 

Seeing Nine upset, Brainstorm drew a transmutation circle on an old cutting board. He then put valuable spices as the reagents and transmuted coffee in front of Nine. He was impressed with how quickly Brainstorm had learned the skill. Brainstorm got one of the coffee beans and tasted it. “This is like the more expensive coffee I normally buy when it is on sale. I want to try this later and see if I can up with my own premium blend. You have pleased me.” 

Nine then brewed the coffee, while Brainstorm cooked the eggs. They then ate breakfast together. It felt good for Brainstorm. He spent so much time alone since he had a tendency to completely dedicate himself to projects. Perhaps the excessive loneliness was making him ill? He knew he needed to talk to more people but it was difficult. Many people found Brainstorm too eccentric for their tastes and rejected him. His only friend was a mech named Chromedome, but he had been busy planning his wedding during his free time. Now Brainstorm had Nine, who seemed generally accepting, which was what Brainstorm needed because Nine would not object over something being unethical or immoral. 

Brainstorm felt guilty about being friends with Nine for reasons he couldn’t understand. He was certain he didn’t approve of Nine’s morbid kinks, but his guilt stemmed from more than that. Brainstorm tried not think of it and continued to eat his breakfast. Nine, who was feeling chatty, continued to lecture over the transmutation circles and told Brainstorm he had made sure to include all of them in the grimoire’s index. The rest of their day continued like this. At one point, Nine was too lazy to walk over for a new glass of water that he transmuted a fancy goblet full of cool water for himself and Brainstorm. After drinking it, he threw his goblet in the trash. 

“What are you doing?!” asked Brainstorm as he took it out of the garbage bin, “I could sell these for more money. Plus, they’re so beautiful.” 

“Oh…” said Nine, “I just didn’t think they were valuable since I transmuted them. I’ve always thrown them away.” 

In the evening, Brainstorm was no longer distraught about his appearance. He had decided to wear a mask, since he was still paranoid about assuming his profane appearance at a random time. Seeing Brainstorm give himself a makeover, Nine followed suit by brewing himself a small potion and took it to the bathroom. Brainstorm followed him out of curiosity. 

Nine had filled the bathtub with water and poured half of the potion into it. He then submerged part of his body into the tub and his paint coming off. Eventually, his plating was no longer black, but red, white and teal. 

“I thought your hair was naturally black and violet,” said Brainstorm as he looked at Nine’s leftover potion, “I know a couple of mechs like that.” 

Nine paused, “I have been forced paint my plating like this since childhood. I don’t know why the cult has an aversion to my natural color.” Nine made sure the bathtub was clean before leaving. 

“Does this potion only work on plating?” asked Brainstorm. 

“No, it can work on other random things, but the thing is that this is a dilute solution,” said Nine, “that way it is safe for use.” 

“A bit off topic, but I think I feel better now and would like to travel with you to your village. Do you remember your village's exact location?" Brainstorm pulled out a laptop from his briefcase. 

"No. I just know it was by the great river near some ruins. And rice! So much rice! How I miss the staple crop of my people!" Nine’s eyes shimmered like jewels. This was the look of someone who truly loved rice above all else. 

"Okay, so 'rice and ruins'?" Brainstorm typed up in a search engine. He showed the results to Nine who nodded. “Hopefully, we’ll travel tomorrow. I’m so tired right now.” Brainstorm yawned. Both of them got ready for bed and slept well throughout the night. 

They woke up early next morning and Brainstorm then calibrated his device to their destination. "Ready?" 

“Not yet!” said Nine as he wore gloves to cover up his skeletal hands, “Now I’m ready.” He and Nine traveled to the past. They appeared in a back-alley. Nine looked around and woke up Brainstorm. The time machine still knocked them out when they used it. "There's a problem,” said Nine nervously, “this is the big city! I'm from a small village." 

"But you said...never-mind, I guess we'll sight-see. I've never been here before." Nine helped Brainstorm out and walked towards the city limits. They had to go get breakfast first and stopped at a nearby restaurant. On Nine’s insistence, they ordered rice with fried eggs and cabbage. This was a typical regional delicacy. 

Nine took his small bowl of rice and sniffed it. Brainstorm looked on since he had no idea how to eat it. It’s a grain, like cereal, right? Brainstorm grabbed a bottle of ketchup and squirted some on it, Nine then began to weep. Brainstorm paused and before he could ask, Nine said, “Tears are the greatest condiment.” 

“Umm…I thought the greatest condiment was ketchup,” Brainstorm pointed at the bottle, “Are you okay? You’re scaring me....” 

Nine laughed. “I’m serious!” continued Brainstorm, “This is worse than all the other stuff we’ve been…nah you’re right. Our first encounter was the most horrifying, especially your suggestion about the bone.” 

Nine tried to catch his breath. “I was joking. But the face you made…the face…” Nine continued to laugh but abruptly stopped. “Damn you. I’m out of mourning tears. I hope you’re happy. You probably are.” 

Brainstorm smiled and they ate their rice. After leaving the restaurant, Nine stopped and asked Brainstorm, “How is your hearing doing?” 

“The tinnitus has stopped ever since you performed that procedure.” 

“…Figures. It restores you completely like any regenerative powers would.” 

Cuts he had gotten before were gone too. The regenerative powers did not limit themselves to rebuilding quartered remains. Brainstorm couldn’t help but grin underneath the mask He had mixed feelings about his powers. The good thing about them was the regeneration. That’s what he wanted the most and it felt completely worth it. The bad things were his “profane appearance” and the occasional (sometimes idiopathic) extreme guilt and sadness. 


	4. Nine lives and nothing is the same.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When everything appears to be going just according to keikaku, Nine's true plans for revenge are oddly revealed and Brainstorm is unable to do anything to stop him...or is he? After the plan is set into motion, Brainstorm returns home knowing that the timeline is changed and nothing is the same anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the most violent and disturbing chapter because Nine murders a couple of mechs. Also, there is a young sparkling who is forced to endure a painful ritual. Also, this chapter has the zombies.
> 
> Despite the fact I originally finished this story back in August 2015, I still think about stuff from this story, particularly the "original timeline." Like, what was Nine's total body count, up until he was captured? Did Brainstorm collab with Perceptor after Quark died? How did Nightbeat react to Quark's sudden death? etc.

They continued walking towards Nine’s village while bantering. After a while, their banter turned into a deep conversation about their fetishes. Surprisingly, Nine wasn’t into necrophilia. Nine only liked to joke about corpses because he had nothing else to joke about. He did admit that the tentacle that wrapped around his leg felt good, but not as good as the floating gloves. 

“About that…,” said Brainstorm, “what exactly do you do to make them do their thing?” 

Nine laughed, “You have to draw this sigil, got a pen?” 

Brainstorm handed him a pen and a piece of paper so Nine could draw the sigil. Aside from that, he wrote clear instructions. Brainstorm then spoke about his fetishes. He also enjoyed tentacles. In fact, he wished to own a tentacle monster for that very purpose, but preferably a small one since it would be more apartment-friendly. But most pets were tentacle-less creatures that floated around or squeaked. He also admitted that he was attracted to those who pursued his same interests - particularly science. It wasn’t just the interest, but the passion those people had for it. That was the main reason he loved both Quark and Perceptor so much. Their love they had for science, made them more attractive to Brainstorm. 

Nine wanted to reply, but he had no words. He had never felt that way about anyone in his life and at first dismissed Brainstorm’s feelings as unrealistic. But he thought about it. To date, only one person who even remotely interested him and that was Brainstorm’s boss, Lobe. Nine, however, dismissed it as a foolish crush because he didn't know this mech who seemed way out of his league. What kind of elegant, articulate person would become interested in him? Nobody, that’s who. 

The finally saw the village in the distance. It was nightfall and both of them were tired. Nine wanted Brainstorm to have teleported them closer, but Brainstorm wanted to sight-see and take photos. He was excited about this unplanned travel because he thought he was just going to chill at home during his vacation. 

As the two headed towards the village, a pair of mechs walked several meters behind them. One of the mechs stopped and pulled out a necklace with a strange, glowing white crystal. The crystal seemed to float and pointed itself towards Nine as if it were a compass. The other mech looked at his companion and said, “Wait, I thought you said he was a sparkling…”

“The vision also showed me a sparkling, this cannot be!” replied the other, “But the crystal never lies. If this is the case, he is the one our master wants. He even looks like the sparkling; same shape of the face, same frame, and same stupid grin. He looks like a smug pretentious asshole.” 

“Why do we need him then?” asked the other mech. 

“The Primus worshipers must never have him,” replied the companion, “but if we have him, then they’ll never know. We cannot simply kill him either because he possesses a very rare gift that is convenient for our purposes. He is a natural-born Death Whisperer. He doesn’t need to undergo the training to even prepare himself for the ritual, which is extremely dangerous. I don’t even know him, but I already hate him.” 

“This is going to be hard,” said the mech, “with a sparkling, we can kidnap him and raise him up the way we want him to be. With an adult, he’s already set in his ways…”

“An adult can be bargained with,” said the companion, “adults want power and control. We can offer him that. It’ll be perfect. If not, we can still kidnap him. It makes no difference.” 

As they neared the village, Nine shed a tear. He didn’t need to say much, it was clear he was overjoyed. They were still at the outskirts, when Nine pointed at a simple building with a tall chimney, “I used to love that restaurant. That’s where they roast the chickens.” He then pointed to the building next to it which had a taller chimney, “And that's where they roast the dead.” Chuckling to himself, “I mean, that is what cremation is and that’s what they do in funeral homes, let’s go.” Brainstorm and Nine headed towards the restaurant. By this time, both of them were very hungry. 

Brainstorm pulled Nine to the side, “First, we need to know if we have enough money. I don’t want to dash and dine, that’s not my style.” Brainstorm and Nine entered a back alley and counted the money. It didn’t seem like there was even enough. “Nine, bring me those dirty newspapers. I want to put our lessons to good use.” Nine brought Brainstorm several newspapers he found on the floor plus some loose pieces of metal. Brainstorm was able to transmute everything into cash. Nine did the same, just in case. Now they had more than enough money, even if it was in less valuable currency. 

However, their actions didn’t go unnoticed. The cultists that were after the young Nine had been following them. They became concerned that Nine had knowledge of alchemy, since those who know it are usually practitioners of the dark arts. This would make it difficult to negotiate with him. As they continued discussing their next course of action, Nine and Brainstorm entered the restaurant. There, Nine and Brainstorm ordered the most succulent of chickens and enjoyed their meal. 

“Nine, what did you want be when you were younger,” asked Brainstorm, “When you lived here in the village?” 

Nine shrugged, “I wasn’t thinking about my future. All I wanted to do is play and chase the little droids, though the hieroglyphs in the ruins always made me interested in surgery. I liked microbiology too...I know that’s a far-fetched dream to go back to school. I’m too old to learn. From what I heard, medical school has always been discriminatory against our kind. Not only do they bully you in school, but they send you off to remote places and you never get to see your family again once you graduate. Is your field like that?” 

“Somewhat,” said Brainstorm, “I’ve faced discrimination at school. They think that you’re stupid if you’re a jet. Did you know, someone once told me I wasn’t very smart because I was ‘air-headed’. Ironically, that person didn’t even make it through the first year and I managed to graduate with honors due to all of my hard work. I wasn’t separated from my family though. I still keep in contact with them, except for my cousin. But then he decides to join the Decepticons.” Brainstorm shook his head in disappointment. 

They continued to eat and left when finished. They left behind a more than reasonable tip. As soon as they left the restaurant, Nine was confronted by the two mechs that had followed him. They seemed adamant about Nine leaving with them. Nine tried to ignore them. He knew exactly who they were. They were members of his former cult. He had grown up with them. But Nine treated them like strangers. Brainstorm then grabbed Nine’s hand and teleported with him five minutes into the future and at the other side of the village. 

“Those bastards!” uttered Nine under his breath, “I remember them. They were unusually friendly to me and then offered to give me a safe home when my village was destroyed. They were probably the ones who burned down my village.” 

“Hold up!” Brainstorm paused, “they’re looking for you as you are, not you when you were little. This is good because you’ve become a distraction. Hopefully, we can convince them to leave…”

“I’ll convince them to leave, alright,” said Nine angrily, “even if it kills me.” 

“We can work this out,” said Brainstorm, “and it won’t involve you dying. All we need to do is lure them away from this village. Like negotiate with them, by the ruins since they’re so far from the village. Once we’ve done that, then we’d outsmart them.” 

“Outsmart?” asked Nine, “Perfect.” He purred contently. 

Unbeknownst to Nine, someone else was listening to their conversation. The young Nine was hiding behind some barrels. He was very similar to his older self. The young Nine became fascinated with his older self, mostly because he looked just like him. Being accustomed to staying out late, he decided to quietly follow them. He remained unnoticed. 

Nine and Brainstorm walked up to the two mechs and scared them when they suddenly began to speak. Nine told them it would be wiser if they made their pact in the ruins because it seemed like a more appropriate place. Plus, it would be far away from nosy villagers. Having agreed, all four of them left the village. They were so distracted among one another, that none of them noticed that the young Nine was still following them. 

They finally arrived at the ruins. Then the mechs started talking about unimaginable power. Nine, who knew what the cult consisted of, was not impressed. Brainstorm listened and watched them talk. Brainstorm wanted to intervene because he noticed Nine becoming angrier with the mechs. The mechs also seemed frustrated too, because Nine was not cooperating as they had hoped. Brainstorm, who had conveniently become good at reading body language, knew that something bad was about to happen. He was sure that the two mechs were going to pounce on Nine and try to kidnap him before his eyes. Nine muttered something and threw his gloves to the floor. 

The mechs looked at Nine’s skeletal hands. They saw the fine glowing purple fibers around them. Only an adept necromancer would perform with such skill on bones and make them as if they were moving like they did in life. Seeing their confusion, Nine explained, “I am aware of your cult and the things you tell me. Your crystal did not lie to you; I am the one you seek. You were expecting a sparkling, but don’t sparklings grow up? The first time, you succeeded in your mission. Took me away and 'raised' me. I have never forgotten your cruel faces.” 

Confused, a mech yelled, “You asshole! You must come with us before the Primus worshipers know about you. Whatever bullshit magic you used to stop this was in vain. We’re taking you no matter what.” 

“You dare insult the abilities of a god?!” Nine was irate. Brainstorm tried to calm him down, but Nine gently pushed him away, “Do you not know the curses that will fall upon you for insulting an Arch-Herald. It was he, who granted me this final wish and I will not let any of you insult the only benevolence I’ve ever received.”

Nine threw himself on the ground and grabbed two cables. Quickly, he pulled them up from out of the ground. Both of them burned in a sharp purple blaze, and cut both mechs vertically in half. Brainstorm watched in horror as the halves bled everywhere. Nine laughed maniacally. As for the young Nine, he had watched too. The sparkling began to shake, closed his eyes and started to cry softly. Brainstorm heard his cries and rushed towards him. The young Nine heard Brainstorm approach and fled.

“Oh Brainstorm…” said Nine in a sweet, sing-songy voice, “…I need a little help patching things up with my two old friends.” The then tittered as he stripped the corpses of their paint job. 

Disgusted, Brainstorm said to Nine, “I just spotted your sparkling-self watching you kill these mechs in cold blood. What the hell were you thinking?! You…traumatized him…yourself…I don’t know anymore!” Brainstorm never thought he’d live to see the day he actually found a sense of morality. 

“Oh please…” Nine rolled his eyes, “…watching a murder like this is nothing compared to the horrors I witnessed in the cult. Better the little me dislike the cult now, than later.” Nine worked quickly to solder the halves together. He touched their paint up with Brainstorm’s help and whispered in their ear. The mechs stood up and Nine sent them back where they came from. As they left, Nine signaled Brainstorm to follow them. Brainstorm stuck his hand in his pocket. He had forgotten to return the crystal necklace. 

The two mechs approached other cult members. They all appeared to be standing in the necropolis. The only source of light was this small fire they had made.“Well...” demanded the cult leader, “and the sparkling?” 

The two mechs struggled to speak with their leader. Their speech was slurred and their movements unsteady. The cult leader grew angry at them and slapped them both across the face, knocking towards the fire. Suddenly, everyone in the cult gasped. The two mechs had been fused together, but with their halves swapped. This was clearly the work of a very powerful necromancer. Nine laughed maniacally in the distance. Before, the cult had the chance to locate Nine, Brainstorm teleported both of them away to a safer distance. 

Nine smiled at Brainstorm. Brainstorm was disturbed with everything that happened; he didn’t smile back. “From the looks of it, I’ve instilled fear into the cult and now they will leave the villagers alone,” Nine smiled. 

“Nine,” sighed Brainstorm, “I know you meant well, I think? But you have severely altered the past. How could you? Things won’t ever be the same anymore. What have you done…?”

Panting, Nine said, “If it was bad, then why didn’t you stop me? It’s an improvement, right?” Nine suddenly collapsed. His breathing became increasing rapid, shallow and irregular. Nine began to feel his spark leave his body and was powerless to stand up. Realizing what had happened; Brainstorm rushed to his side but knew it was too late. Nine gasped after a period of apnea. Brainstorm leaned over to hear his faint words. 

“Tell me, my Lord, what will my future be like now?” Nine paused, gasping, “Was my brazen act in vain?” 

Brainstorm closed his eyes as his cool tears streamed down his rusting face, “No it was not. You have a good upbringing in a loving home…your family does their best to ensure you have a good future. You go on to study at a prestigious university. You graduate at the top of your class and are beloved by all…You help save many people. You do not realize it, but you are a hero…”

Nine smiled lightly, only for his face to change to a blank and empty expression. Brainstorm continued, “…you don’t realize it because you live your life full of guilt and self-loathing. Much like now, you grow up feeling like a marionette; your career and purpose, dictated by others. You think everything you have done is wrong. You did nothing wrong, I am to blame. I am the reason you’re consumed with guilt and live life without purpose. I am sorry for hurting you but it had to be done for the greater good, including your own.” Nine faded from his arms. He had no need to exist, since his future was now radically different. 

The young Nine suddenly returned. He remembered he had forgotten his ball and had gone back to retrieve it. Brainstorm managed to spot him in the darkness. He flew towards him, trying to snatch him up. Nine let out a loud cry and ran into the bushes. The cultists heard the young Nine, because he was nearby and captured him. Nine tried to fly away, but his wings were underdeveloped. Nine was terrified; he had seen the murders which were still fresh in his mind. The cultists were threatening. The cult leader was angry at Nine and was ready to murder him on the spot. He wanted revenge on the first fool who crossed his path. 

Brainstorm flew towards the cultists, appearing in his profane form. The cultists stopped and dropped to their knees because the recognized him immediately. “If you worry about the sparkling falling into the hands of Primus, do not worry. I have seen the future. Give him the mark of a Death Whisperer to make him unappealing. After all, the Primus worshipers execute Death Whisperers without question. What greater irony for them to kill the very person they swore to protect. As for your switched up companions, let that be a sign that planning to set the village ablaze displeases me, for I am a god who works in secrecy. If you do not believe me, then believe this crystal.” Brainstorm pulled out the crystal necklace and the glowing crystal pointed directly at the young Nine. Brainstorm then threw the necklace at the cultists. 

The cult leader managed to find the courage to speak, “That’s bullshit, but I believe you. Your reasoning, for the most part, is sound.” At that, Brainstorm teleported himself away, “disappearing” before their eyes. Brainstorm had no choice. He felt his body succumbing to the dark energy within him, he saw glimpses of the future and the visions upset him. Brainstorm transformed back to his regular self in the distance. Knowing it was too dangerous to show his face to the cult, he ran towards the village. He needed to warn them. 

Meanwhile, the cultists held Nine down. One of them grabbed an enchanted hook and pulled out Nine’s vocalizer, with it still being attached to his body. Another cultist then engraved a necromantic sigil on the vocalizer, before letting it go. “Foolish sparkling, that so-called Arch-Herald, or whatever that irreverent creature was, may’ve asked us to spare your life. We will only oblige because we do not know what he’s capable of. However, we don’t take kindly to intruders within our midst, so the first phrase you utter will be the phrase that binds the sparks of the departed to the realm of the living.” 

Nine still shaken, had no clue what was going on and was frightened. “I’m sorry!” he cried at the top of his lungs hoping it would make things better. But it did not, especially since all the dead within hearing distance could hear it and they were in the middle of a necropolis. Suddenly, the corpses started popping from out of the ground. The young Nine ran away as fast as his little legs could carry him. 

Brainstorm was having no luck in convincing the villagers. They either thought he was crazy or they were distrustful of foreigners. However, when they heard the young Nine’s frightened cries, they accepted Brainstorm’s warning and tried to evacuate. Other villagers readied the defense. Brainstorm handed the resistance some of the experimental guns he had on hand. Within moments, the first wave of terrorcons struck. Brainstorm helped the villagers fight them back, packing his own weaponry. As he was fighting, he spotted the young Nine and his family leaving the village for safety. Relieved, Brainstorm continued to engage in combat. The battle was chaotic. Wave after wave of terrorcons continued their unrelenting attacks. In the end, the village was set ablaze but as far as he knew, there were no casualties. Though this wasn’t exactly what Nine had wanted, it was close-enough. Brainstorm took back his weapons and teleported himself back to the present. 

Brainstorm was so exhausted he passed out on the bed. Hours later, he felt someone tap on his shoulder. He turned around and spotted Chromedome, whom Brainstorm had given his apartment keys to. Brainstorm, who was still shaken, clung to Chromedome and cried all over him. Chromedome didn’t know what was going on and hugged Brainstorm. He then took Brainstorm out on a date to cheer him up. Brainstorm didn’t mention anything about Nine. He was upset about what had happened to Nine and worried about what became of him. With that lingering thought, Brainstorm couldn’t enjoy the date or much of his vacation. 

He tried cleaning up his house and found Nine’s amphora. He looked inside and took out the contents, which were the various potions, cave mushrooms and embalming tools. Brainstorm remembered Nine telling him they were valuable. He carefully examined them. Seeing that he could use similarly shaped tools for his own experiments, Brainstorm began to duplicate the tools with a combination of transmutation and bending with pliers. Brainstorm made up his mind to sell the tools. It’s something Nine would’ve wanted him to do as additional payment for rescuing him. 

The last day of his vacation, Brainstorm went to the museum and loosely retold the events of how he discovered the tools. Impressed with the findings, the curator didn’t bother to question Brainstorm’s story and purchased the tools for an astronomical amount when he determined their authenticity. Brainstorm deposited the money in his bank account and got ready to go back to work. 

The next day when he was at work, one of the managers was introducing new employees to the facility. Brainstorm normally didn’t attend such meetings, but felt the urge to go this time. He sat next to his only friend, Chromedome. 

“…Last but not least, I’d like to introduce you to this talented surgeon, a mech who has saved many from the brink of death. Practically bringing them back from the dead…” the manager signaled one of the new employees to come up on stage, “…Dr. Pharma.” Brainstorm’s eyes widened as the audience clapped. 

Pharma, the same jet Brainstorm had been time-traveling with, got up on stage. He was giving a speech about a couple of experimental procedures he was developing thanks to advancing medical technologies. However, something about seeing him again made Brainstorm very upset. He became so upset; he wasn’t able to stay to hear the rest of Pharma’s speech and ran to the bathroom to cry. Brainstorm finally understood one of the reasons of his idiopathic sadness – it was the guilt of forcing the young Nine/Pharma to participate in the ritual, marking an innocent person for death. Brainstorm tried to rationalize it was for the greater good. If Pharma was using his abilities to revive patients and using it as a lifeline while he was performing life-saving procedures, then it had to be good. 

Yet, none of this comforted Brainstorm. Pharma was condemned to death. Feeling guilty, Brainstorm made no attempts to befriend Pharma. He also remembered that Pharma had vindictive tendencies and the last thing he wanted to do was become enemies with him. Only once, he managed to get the courage to speak with him. Brainstorm found out Pharma’s birthday and tried to gift him a copy of the alchemical grimoire Nine had given him. After all, he had a feeling Pharma would need this because it was very handy. 

Pharma chuckled, “I don’t even know who you are and I can see you mean well but…I find sorcery to be abhorrent and detest it passionately.” 

“This isn’t sorcery, this is alchemy,” said Brainstorm, “with alchemy, you can transmute raw materials into other materials you would need. This can come in handy if you’re trying to mix up medicine, run out of an ingredient and have no time to purchase it.” Brainstorm continued to explain to Pharma the benefits of knowing such a skill. However, Brainstorm was trying to return his “borrowed” knowledge to its rightful owner. Pharma, as ‘Nine’ had shown so much potential of doing good things with it. It was only just that he should know about this as a doctor, to help even more people. After a while, Pharma accepted his gift and thanked him. 

The ordeal did very little to relieve Brainstorm’s guilt, even if Pharma didn’t seem to have any animosity against him. Brainstorm awkwardly left his presence, the pain of never being with someone he grew to love hurt him immensely. It was as bad, if not worse than the loss of Perceptor, in a previous timeline, despite it being a strange ephemeral engagement. However, Brainstorm remained optimistic, for one day he knew he’d make peace with Pharma and this brought him comfort. 


End file.
